5 Biggest Winners & Losers From WWE Raw (August 1)

3. Loser: Mark Henry

It’s a scientifically-proven fact that the more patriotic an American wrestler appears, the bigger the beating he’s going to take from the foreign heel. Okay, maybe not, but there’s a direct correlation. WWE loves throwing cheap heat at Rusev by turning all of his opponents into flag-waving patriots to throw into the big Bulgarian meat grinder: Mark Henry’s played that role before, and he played it again last night.

The World’s Strongest Man didn’t pull a Zack Ryder and come-out dressed like a low-rent Captain America, but WWE coloured him patriotic by mentioning his status as the company’s Olympic Ambassador. Henry, of course, got the obligatory “USA!” chants from the crowd, and his match with Rusev was a fun little power battle, but he lost convincingly, and the former World Heavyweight Champion once against slinks to irrelevance.

It’s hard to tell what WWE plan on doing with Henry. Now 45 years old, he’s made only fleeting appearances over the last few years, and only ever shows-up whenever somebody needs a quick victory. It’s not a terrible role for him going forward, but it’s hard for an American patriot to come-out of these Rusev matches without looking like a chump, and after Rusev’s win and post-match berating, that’s exactly what happened to Mark Henry.